ST. PAUL – State Rep. Dean Urdahl, Acton Township, announces school districts throughout Minnesota are receiving a combined $30 million from the state to fund safety initiatives.
The supplemental aid must be used for expenditures as authorized under the Safe Schools Levy. This includes a wide variety of facility and programming purposes such as police liaison services, counseling, school security, gang resistance education training and other crime prevention and safety measures for students and staff.
“Our schools each face their own unique safety challenges and this funding allows local citizens and officials to make decisions that suit them best,” Urdahl said. “I support this approach, in part, because tailored solutions help us make the most out of tax dollars, delivering the largest safety benefits based on a school district’s particular needs.”
The money comes from a one-time Safe Schools Supplemental Aid appropriation in the state’s new education budget. The $30 million will be provided to school districts and charter schools on a per-pupil basis. All schools in Urdahl’s District 18A will receive funding, including Hutchinson ($98,106), Dassel-Cokato ($77,913) Litchfield ($53,405), Eden Valley-Watkins ($33,139) and ACGC ($29,173).
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